Sensory Rooms
Sensory Rooms May Help Ease the Anxiety Students Feel from COVID-19
Sensory rooms are quickly becoming an important element of learning space design, and for good reason:
They can prove to be effective at helping students with
anxiety or sensory processing issues to calm down and relax, so
that students are better able to focus and learn.
Photo © ABO PHOTOGRAPHY
Some children, such as those on the autism spectrum, can
easily become overwhelmed by touch, movement, sights, or
sounds. Spending time in a calming sensory room might help
them build intrinsic self-regulation skills to support better focus,
attention, and behavior.
However, a sensory room isn’t just for students with special
needs. The prevalence of anxiety is escalating across all student
populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. A calming sensory
room offers a quiet space to regroup, which might help
students manage their responses to stress.
This article will examine what a sensory room is and why it’s
important, especially in the era of COVID-19. It will also offer
ideas for creating a calming sensory room in your own school.
Why Create a Sensory Room
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control show
that one in 54 children has been identified with autism spectrum
disorder, a number that continues to rise. Many students
on the autism spectrum have sensory processing issues that
make them overly sensitive to
touch, light, and sounds.
Sensory processing disorders
can affect other students as well,
not just those on the autism spectrum.
In fact, research suggests
that between 5 percent and 16 percent
of children exhibit symptoms.
Time in a calming sensory room, incorporated as part of
a regular school schedule, may give students opportunities to
recharge and regroup. In turn, this helps promote intrinsic
self-regulation, which may reduce the likelihood that students
will experience meltdowns and other inappropriate behaviors as
they learn to advocate for their own sensory needs.
A sensory room often includes gentle lighting and soothing
sounds, along with furniture that helps define spatial boundaries
(such as chairs with higher backs and sides) to help children
feel secure in their physical space and sensory tools that help
promote self-regulation.
Students can’t learn if they’re upset, distracted, anxious, or
overstimulated. A sensory room might help them regulate their
emotions, so they can focus more effectively. In fact, a study of
how sensory rooms in Muskegon County, Michigan, affected
students’ readiness to learn found that students were 56 percent more engaged in classroom activities after
using a sensory room.
Aside from helping students focus, the
stimulating environment of a sensory room
may heighten awareness, provide a sense of
security and comfort, improve creativity,
promote mental and physical relaxation,
and even decrease aggressive behaviors.
Not Just for Students
with Special Needs
Although many people think of sensory
rooms as an intervention aimed primarily
at special-education students, in reality
any student may benefit from spending time in a sensory room.
As a result of COVID-19, it’s possible that a large number of
students (and not just those with IEPs!) might need assistance
with managing their emotions and coping
with anxiety or trauma when schools
reopen. Sensory rooms are one strategy
that may help.
Even before the pandemic, a growing
percentage of students were experiencing
anxiety: The Washington Post reports that
the number of anxiety diagnoses among
youth ages 6 to 17 rose by 20 percent in
the five-year period from 2007 to 2012.
The coronavirus pandemic is only escalating
this issue. A survey from Common
Sense Media and SurveyMonkey found
that 61 percent of teens are worried they
or someone in their family will get sick; 63 percent are concerned
about their family’s ability to earn money; and 42 percent feel
lonelier than usual.
A sensory room might help even older students calm down
when they’re feeling anxious. A separate Washington Post story
indicates that colleges are giving students calming sensory spaces
to relax and decompress as well.
Sensory rooms fit in well with the trend toward Universal Design
for Learning (UDL), a framework for meeting the needs of
all learners. UDL calls for more inclusive learning environments
that provide multiple means of engagement, expression, and representation
to help all students succeed. By helping students calm
down, self-regulate, and focus, sensory rooms aptly meet this goal.
What a Calming
Sensory Room Might Include
The design of a sensory room is limited only by your imagination,
and each school might equip its sensory spaces a little
differently. However, here are some ideas to help guide you.
Soothing lights, sounds, and sights. Soothing visual or
auditory inputs are common elements of a calming sensory
room. For instance, Cozy Shades can provide muted, warmer
lighting that helps reduce the harsh glare of overhead fluorescent
lights. Nature sounds, including water-related noises such
as ocean waves or a babbling brook, can help put students at
ease. Bubble tubes are also great for quiet spaces, because they
give students something soothing to watch that helps promote a calming, positive vibe.
Beanbag chairs and other comfortable seating. Beanbag
chairs allow students to sink in and feel enveloped in their
surroundings, which can be comforting for students. They’re
also easy to move and keep clean, which is an important factor
amid COVID-19. Other sensory seating options include cocoon
swings, couches, and more.
Fidget tools and other focus aids. Squishy balls and other
fidget tools serve a number of key purposes. Besides helping
to calm students, they can help support fine motor skills with
strength and dexterity — while also improving students’ focus
and attention. This Scientific American article explores the cognitive
benefits of fidget tools in more detail.
Weighted items and other deep touch pressure input. Sensory
solutions that offer deep touch pressure input, such as a
snuggle wrap or soft weighted lap pad, blanket, or cuddly companion,
may help provide additional self-regulation for calming.
A Valuable UDL Strategy
A sensory room can help both general and special-education
students of all ages with self-regulation to promote improved
focus and attention, while fostering healthy learning.
By making learning environments more inclusive and supportive
of all students’ needs, sensory rooms are a valuable UDL
strategy — and they can be an effective component of a Social
and Emotional Learning (SEL) or Trauma-Informed Care approach
to managing anxiety and stress.
This article originally appeared in the July/August 2020 issue of Spaces4Learning.